Jacki Neil Boss retiring from leading role at The Arc

Thursday

Apr 17, 2014 at 12:01 AM

By Melissa WestphalRockford Register Star

ROCKFORD — Jacki Neil Boss is leaving her post as executive director of The Arc of Winnebago, Boone and Ogle Counties, but that won’t stop her work to advance opportunities for people with developmental and intellectual disabilities.

Boss has led the agency for nearly 11 years and is retiring at the end of the month; she plans to spend more time with her husband, John, and to travel. John has been retired for three years, and Boss “really feels that the time is right.”

“The Arc is in a very good position right now. There are some exciting, new things going forward.

“I’ve done my part and have a wonderful person to serve as interim director. She’s going to be the ideal person to put together the right team to move forward.”

The Arc attracted Boss’s attention more than two decades ago. Her oldest son has multiple disabilities, and she started working for the agency as a part-time family-support employee.

She worked for several other nonprofits after that, and when The Arc’s top job became vacant, she remembers thinking “this is the job for me.”

“And luckily for me, they agreed,” she said. “I’m so blessed to be able to earn a living for my family while doing something that was all about my heart. Part of it is an advocacy issue, a civil rights issue of recognition and integration of people with disabilities into the community as a whole. People before me helped me and my son. I wanted to help the people who came after me.”

Boss’s son, Alex, 44, lives in a residential home run by Milestone Inc. She called him a “treasure,” saying he has a very meaningful life.

The Arc typically serves 200 to 250 people a month and employs 10 people. Boss said her proudest accomplishment had been working with staff members and volunteers to keep the agency afloat when faced with state and federal budget cuts before and after the Great Recession.

The agency got creative with community fundraisers, such as the Great Home Giveaway and the Chocoholic Frolic, to supplement the decreased funding.

The popular Great Home Giveaway even had to be adapted because of the struggling economy. When the housing market tanked, The Arc feared that people wouldn’t want to win a house. So the agency decided to offer the choice of winning a house or cash.

The Arc discontinued the Great Home Giveaway last year and launched the Great Dream Machine, in which people can donate to The Arc and be entered to win large cash prizes. A drawing took place Dec. 31, and another one will occur in June.

The Arc also is involved in a partnership of agencies that work with the developmentally disabled community called Intersect for Ability.

“We are all about collaboration and working with other organizations because our focus and mission is to help people with disabilities in the community use community services and businesses, so they can fully participate and make it possible so people have choices,” Boss said.

Amy Newell, who joined The Arc as marketing director in November, will take over as interim executive director when Boss leaves.

Newell, a Rockford native who lives in Winnebago, worked in human services for the city of Rockford for more than 11 years, an experience that piqued her interest in working with nonprofits. She connected with Boss and The Arc while working at the Clock Tower Resort, home to Chocoholic Frolic.

She’s in the process of earning a certification in nonprofit management.

“When Jacki first approached me about the position, I was excited about being back involved with an organization making a difference in the community,” Newell said. “This is a much more personal level of getting to see participants every day, how what we’re doing specifically is impacting them and our ability to help them.”

Newell said she’s honored that Boss considers her a good fit for the interim role, and she praised Boss for her work to help the organization stay afloat amid heavy state and federal budget cuts.

She looks forward to expanding fundraising opportunities and to broadening opportunities for The Arc participants, such as art programs. Boss still plans to work with The Arc for fundraisers, and she’s still very involved with The Arc of Illinois.